


In the Ruins of Ekallatum

by devilinthedetails



Category: PIERCE Tamora - Works, Tortall - Tamora Pierce
Genre: Comfort, Conquest, Destroyed Civilization, Exploring Ruins, F/M, Gen, Lost City, Rise and Fall of Empires, Romance, Snuggling, Traveling, interracial couple
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-16
Updated: 2018-02-16
Packaged: 2019-03-19 11:41:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 712
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13703736
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/devilinthedetails/pseuds/devilinthedetails
Summary: Kalasin shivers in the remains of a once great city.





	In the Ruins of Ekallatum

In the Ruins of Ekallatum

“I’ve never been this far south.” Kalasin’s braid whirled in the wind off the Frozen Sea. Even during summer, the waves were frigid enough to freeze the toe of anybody so foolish as to attempt to dance with them, and the air that swept off it was cool enough to raise goosebumps along her skin that made her wish she had donned something more substantial than a sleeveless silk dress, or maybe the chill emanated from the crimson clay bricks beneath her that silently screamed of bloodshed and faded glory. It was almost impossible to believe that she was sitting on the wall of a mighty fortress that had once guarded the inlet harbor of a rich port city of an empire that had borders and ambitions as expansive as Carthak. An empire that Carthak had crushed under the boots of its legions because Carthak tolerated no rivals to its grandeur or challengers to its supremacy.

“Few have.” Kaddar caught her braid as it whipped too close to his face and rubbed a thumb over it, tracing the pattern of a simple hairstyle he had seen her wear a thousand times. “This is the last tip of land the Frozen Sea licks at before it touches the end of the world where the masters say there is only glaciers.” 

“I know that.” Although Kalasin had known that fact from the maps she had memorized as a little girl tutored in geography from a young age, no map had ever been able to convey what it felt like to sit on the remains of a fallen civilization on the windswept beach of what seemed the brink of the world. “I’ve seen the same maps you have.” 

“You’re snappish as a crocodile.” Kaddar’s fingers tugged teasingly at her braid, and she scowled at him even though it hadn’t hurt. “I never claimed you didn’t know, my sweet-tempered lady.” 

“I don’t want to hear things I already know.” Kalasin twisted her hair away from Kaddar’s grasp. “Tell me something new that will impress me with your unparalleled brilliance, or I’ll fear your head is as much a rock as the bricks beneath me.” 

“Do you know why Ekallatum was destroyed?” Kaddar shot her a sidelong glance. 

“Carthak waged three wars against Ekatallatum, each bloodier than the last, and Ekallatum was conquered in the last one.” Kalasin shrugged with a flippancy she didn’t feel on the skeleton of a lost civilization. “What mercy can a fallen empire expect from an ascendant one?” 

“Carthak defeated many countries and cities but only leveled Ekallatum.” Kaddar trailed a palm across scorch marks that were still visible after a century of abandonment. “The walls of the city were pulled apart brick by brick, fire mages burned every wall and roof, and the men were slaughtered while the women and children were sold into slavery. This wasn’t just a conquest. It was an eternal humiliation, reducing majesty to dust and ashes.” 

“I don’t know why.” Kalasin hated to admit that she didn’t understand something her husband did since it made him smug as a reptile sunning itself along the banks of the River Zekoi. “I suspect you do, though.” 

“Your suspicion is justified because I do.” Kaddar kept her in suspense for a moment before continuing, crisp as the clay below her, “Ekallatum marched their armored elephants–we Carthaki had never seen elephants used in battle before that–through the mountains to the gates of Carthak City. They threatened the city we called immortal with death and destruction, and we could never forgive them for that, so when our legions took the fight to the city they claimed was eternal, we ruined it forever.” 

The mingled pride and revulsion in his tone made Kalasin shiver. She didn’t want to think about the rise and fall of empires and eternal cities. She just wanted to cuddle with her husband by the sea. Leaning her shoulder against his, she whispered into the shell of his ear, “I”m cold as ice, Kaddar. Hold me.”

Wrapping his arm around her waist, he obliged her, drawing her close against his chest, where she could hear the powerful drumbeat of his heart that promised war as much as it did peace.


End file.
